Authors

Discussion

Industrialisation was an important part of socialist regimes in Southeast Europe in creating the "socialist" working class identity. In some cases, rural cities were designed from scratch and their purpose of existence could only be justified while the factory continued to exist. In these cities, workers were trained together, they shared the same living and working space, and they were exposed to similar ethos. The closures, destruction and privatisations of these industrial plants after the collapse of the socialist regimes, resulted in alteration of the social, cultural, and economic fabric of rural cities and its local communities. What aspects of collective memory are inscribed in abandoned industrial sites and what can these memories show us in relation to the social and political transformations in rural cities after socialism? More crucially, what is to be done with the post-industrial heritage in the present? 

Drawing on the concept of the commons, this paper explores the legacy of post-industrialism in rural cities in Albania, Bulgaria, and Serbia. Acknowledging that industrial ruination is an important legacy, the paper proposes an alternative entry point in understanding transition and post-socialism, using as an entry point the visual and material cultures of industrial decay. This is put forward by analysing both current official policies as well as the collective memories, experiences, and testimonies related to local communities.